"The moment the name of Ireland is mentioned," Sydney Smith had written, "the English seem to bid adieu to common feeling, common prudence, and common sense, and to act with the barbarity of tyrants, and the fatuity of idiots." They could not grasp the force of the separatist movement in Ireland - not just an adolescent craze or a pastime for cranks, but an expression of centuries of emotion, almost ready to flower into revolution.-- Jan Morris, Pax Britannica: The Climax of an Empire
Monday, October 5, 2009
Kiss Me, I'm Quebecois
Monday, August 10, 2009
Anti-Democratic Conservative Party
The Hill Times is reporting that Conservative Democratic Reform Minister of State Steven Fletcher suggests that the Bloc, as a sovereigntist party, shouldn't be receiving the public subsidy of $1.95 per vote earned in the last election.
12/08/09 UPDATE: Chantal Hébert picks up the topic here. I'd also like to bring this post to your attention.
This comes shortly after an editorial in the Globe and Mail suggesting that, since they aren't a "truly national" party, the Bloc shouldn't be receiving the subsidy.
Sigh.
There are a few problems with this argument.
1) Yes, the Bloc does receive the vast majority of its funding from the subsidy. But it wouldn't be crippled without it. The subsidy is a recent change to the system, meant to ensure that parties aren't beholden to corporations or wealthy individuals. But for over a decade the Bloc survived without the subsidy. Not only that, they flourished, and won a majority of seats in Quebec every single time.
2) While Canadians can justifiably disparage the party for promoting Quebec sovereignty, that alone does not justify treating the party differently. That the Bloc is a sovereigntist party isn't an accident. About 10-12% of Canadian citizens are Quebec sovereigntists. They voted for the party, and that is why it exists. Saying that a party that promotes Quebec sovereignty shouldn't be treated equally is the same as saying that Canadians who promote Quebec sovereignty shouldn't be treated equally. Are we not Canadian citizens?
3) The tax dollars of Quebec sovereigntists are worth as much as the tax dollars of Quebec federalists and other Canadians. I voted for the Bloc Quebecois in the last election. So my $1.95 should go to the Bloc Quebecois. It should not go to another party, it should not go to no party. I pay taxes like everyone else, and my tax dollars should be treated like everyone else.
4) Party fundraising does not exactly keep their hands out of the till. Elizabeth May says it best: "Whenever Stephen Harper or Tom Flanagan crows about how they've done so much better at fundraising and they don't rely on the tax subsidy I want to scream. "If you make a $400 donation to a political party it only costs you $100 because there's a $300 tax rebate, so it's not as if the fundraising piece of political party work is somehow divorced from the federal coffers, it is entirely dependent on the federal coffers. ... Many NGOs with charitable status could only dream of the kind of lucrative tax rebates that political parties have."
So, if the Conservatives have raised about $4 million in this last quarter, about $3 million of that will come from government funding - and it doesn't matter who I voted for. The Bloc raises very little money from donations, while the Conservatives (and now the Liberals) do. So, my tax dollars are going more towards subsidising those federalist donations than they are donations to the Bloc.
5) It's anti-democratic. Plain and simple. This sort of argument is coming about because the Tories aren't happy that people voted for the Bloc (instead of them). They didn't like the decision, so they want to change the result. They don't like that they can't win an election the normal way, so they want to change the rules.
No matter what part of the country you're from, no matter what your political views, you should be against this idea of penalising the Bloc Quebecois. Want to remove all public funding? Fine, that's a legitimate point of view.
Want to penalise the Bloc because you don't like their point-of-view? That's anti-democratic. Move to China.
11/08/09 CORRECTION: The Bloc actually does do a lot of grass-roots fundraising. The issue is that the Bloc does it differently from the other parties. Each riding association raises its own money to be spent locally, while the Bloc Quebecois national headquarters is run by the public subsidy. So, according to Pierre Paquette, the Bloc still raises as much as it did before by fundraising, the difference is it is reported separately. This jives with my experience, as I know of ridings in Quebec that aren't even represented by a Bloc MP that can still raise $20,000 without too much difficulty.
12/08/09 UPDATE: Chantal Hébert picks up the topic here. I'd also like to bring this post to your attention.
This comes shortly after an editorial in the Globe and Mail suggesting that, since they aren't a "truly national" party, the Bloc shouldn't be receiving the subsidy.
Sigh.
There are a few problems with this argument.
1) Yes, the Bloc does receive the vast majority of its funding from the subsidy. But it wouldn't be crippled without it. The subsidy is a recent change to the system, meant to ensure that parties aren't beholden to corporations or wealthy individuals. But for over a decade the Bloc survived without the subsidy. Not only that, they flourished, and won a majority of seats in Quebec every single time.
2) While Canadians can justifiably disparage the party for promoting Quebec sovereignty, that alone does not justify treating the party differently. That the Bloc is a sovereigntist party isn't an accident. About 10-12% of Canadian citizens are Quebec sovereigntists. They voted for the party, and that is why it exists. Saying that a party that promotes Quebec sovereignty shouldn't be treated equally is the same as saying that Canadians who promote Quebec sovereignty shouldn't be treated equally. Are we not Canadian citizens?
3) The tax dollars of Quebec sovereigntists are worth as much as the tax dollars of Quebec federalists and other Canadians. I voted for the Bloc Quebecois in the last election. So my $1.95 should go to the Bloc Quebecois. It should not go to another party, it should not go to no party. I pay taxes like everyone else, and my tax dollars should be treated like everyone else.
4) Party fundraising does not exactly keep their hands out of the till. Elizabeth May says it best: "Whenever Stephen Harper or Tom Flanagan crows about how they've done so much better at fundraising and they don't rely on the tax subsidy I want to scream. "If you make a $400 donation to a political party it only costs you $100 because there's a $300 tax rebate, so it's not as if the fundraising piece of political party work is somehow divorced from the federal coffers, it is entirely dependent on the federal coffers. ... Many NGOs with charitable status could only dream of the kind of lucrative tax rebates that political parties have."
So, if the Conservatives have raised about $4 million in this last quarter, about $3 million of that will come from government funding - and it doesn't matter who I voted for. The Bloc raises very little money from donations, while the Conservatives (and now the Liberals) do. So, my tax dollars are going more towards subsidising those federalist donations than they are donations to the Bloc.
5) It's anti-democratic. Plain and simple. This sort of argument is coming about because the Tories aren't happy that people voted for the Bloc (instead of them). They didn't like the decision, so they want to change the result. They don't like that they can't win an election the normal way, so they want to change the rules.
No matter what part of the country you're from, no matter what your political views, you should be against this idea of penalising the Bloc Quebecois. Want to remove all public funding? Fine, that's a legitimate point of view.
Want to penalise the Bloc because you don't like their point-of-view? That's anti-democratic. Move to China.
11/08/09 CORRECTION: The Bloc actually does do a lot of grass-roots fundraising. The issue is that the Bloc does it differently from the other parties. Each riding association raises its own money to be spent locally, while the Bloc Quebecois national headquarters is run by the public subsidy. So, according to Pierre Paquette, the Bloc still raises as much as it did before by fundraising, the difference is it is reported separately. This jives with my experience, as I know of ridings in Quebec that aren't even represented by a Bloc MP that can still raise $20,000 without too much difficulty.
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Headline News?
This is the current TOP STORY on the Globe and Mail website.
Two years ago, a father let his seven-year-old drive the family car on a country-road in the North Shore region of Quebec. He then posted the video on You-Tube.
For the Journal de Montréal, it's a shocking video. It's one of the top stories on the websites of CBC, La Presse, The Gazette, The National Post, The Toronto Star, and I'm sure dozens of other news sites.
Will someone please think of the children?!
Seriously, who cares? The biggest mistake seems to have been putting it on YouTube. Having the kid drive wasn't exactly a genius move, but it isn't the Holocaust either. When I was less than six years old, I remember being put on my dad's lap and driving the car around for a few minutes. Granted, I was in an empty parking lot but still. I grew up in a town where people always drove around before they even got their licenses. Kids were driving tractors down the road when they were working on their farms.
Sheesh. There are a lot of hard-working people in the media who try to investigate stories, report on news, and get to the issues on important matters. Then there are those who are looking for the next bit of sensationalist garbage.
Ugh. We're getting closer and closer to the days when instead of a newspaper on your doorstep, you'll be handed a pitchfork and/or torch for the next lynch mob.
Two years ago, a father let his seven-year-old drive the family car on a country-road in the North Shore region of Quebec. He then posted the video on You-Tube.
For the Journal de Montréal, it's a shocking video. It's one of the top stories on the websites of CBC, La Presse, The Gazette, The National Post, The Toronto Star, and I'm sure dozens of other news sites.
Will someone please think of the children?!
Seriously, who cares? The biggest mistake seems to have been putting it on YouTube. Having the kid drive wasn't exactly a genius move, but it isn't the Holocaust either. When I was less than six years old, I remember being put on my dad's lap and driving the car around for a few minutes. Granted, I was in an empty parking lot but still. I grew up in a town where people always drove around before they even got their licenses. Kids were driving tractors down the road when they were working on their farms.
Sheesh. There are a lot of hard-working people in the media who try to investigate stories, report on news, and get to the issues on important matters. Then there are those who are looking for the next bit of sensationalist garbage.
Ugh. We're getting closer and closer to the days when instead of a newspaper on your doorstep, you'll be handed a pitchfork and/or torch for the next lynch mob.
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Ignatieff in the Gaspésie
Michael Ignatieff, leader of the Liberal Party of Canada, has been spending sometime in the Gaspésie (my native region) for a few days. On Saturday, he was at Mont-Joli, Amqui, and Matane. Tomorrow, he'll be in Gaspé.
That's one hell of a trip for two ridings, both held by the Bloc Québécois.
In the valley of the Matapedia and the north coast, the Bloc has held the riding since 1993, and before that it was held by the Progressive Conservatives. The Liberals haven't represented the region since 1984. However, it has at times been a close-run thing. In 2008 the margin was only 600 votes, and it was less than 300 in 2000. However, the margin was as great as 8,000 votes in 2004, and the Liberals placed third in 2006.
In the Baie des Chaleurs and La Pointe regions, the Bloc has also held it or one of its constituent parts since 1993 (it has changed shape a lot in the last two decades). The margin here has been much higher, at more than 5,000 last year.
I'm not sure what benefit Ignatieff's trip will have, the Gaspésie is unlikely to change its voting patterns, though Jean-Yves Roy in the Haute-Gaspésie has said he won't run again in the next election.
The Gaspésie has some history of voting Liberal at the provincial level, as Nathalie Normandeau is from the Baie des Chaleurs region.
But this is sovereigntist territory. René Lévesque was from New Carlisle. Only Bonaventure voted against sovereignty in 1995 (52% to 48%). Gaspé voted 59% in favour in 1995, Matane 62%, and Matapédia 64%.
While a Liberal victory in one of the federal ridings is not unthinkable, it is unlikely. I certainly hope that my kin won't vote that way.
My relatives in the region seem to be a good representation of the attitude there. They hate politicians, but are Quebecers through-and-through. They vote sovereigntists, but they don't like any of them. They dislike Canadian and federalist politicians even more.
That's one hell of a trip for two ridings, both held by the Bloc Québécois.
In the valley of the Matapedia and the north coast, the Bloc has held the riding since 1993, and before that it was held by the Progressive Conservatives. The Liberals haven't represented the region since 1984. However, it has at times been a close-run thing. In 2008 the margin was only 600 votes, and it was less than 300 in 2000. However, the margin was as great as 8,000 votes in 2004, and the Liberals placed third in 2006.
In the Baie des Chaleurs and La Pointe regions, the Bloc has also held it or one of its constituent parts since 1993 (it has changed shape a lot in the last two decades). The margin here has been much higher, at more than 5,000 last year.
I'm not sure what benefit Ignatieff's trip will have, the Gaspésie is unlikely to change its voting patterns, though Jean-Yves Roy in the Haute-Gaspésie has said he won't run again in the next election.
The Gaspésie has some history of voting Liberal at the provincial level, as Nathalie Normandeau is from the Baie des Chaleurs region.
But this is sovereigntist territory. René Lévesque was from New Carlisle. Only Bonaventure voted against sovereignty in 1995 (52% to 48%). Gaspé voted 59% in favour in 1995, Matane 62%, and Matapédia 64%.
While a Liberal victory in one of the federal ridings is not unthinkable, it is unlikely. I certainly hope that my kin won't vote that way.
My relatives in the region seem to be a good representation of the attitude there. They hate politicians, but are Quebecers through-and-through. They vote sovereigntists, but they don't like any of them. They dislike Canadian and federalist politicians even more.
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Radisson
Here is a good little piece by Patrick Legacé about Radisson, Quebec.
Radisson is Hydro-Quebec's little village in the north. The town of about 300 people is the northernmost non-native village in Quebec, and is at the same latitude as the mouth of James Bay. It's inhabitants maintain the huge Robert-Bourassa hydro-electrical dam complex.
I visited Radisson and the Baie-James region in 2007. It was an incredible trip. I drove all the way from Gatineau to Radisson, stopping in Matagami on the way up. It was grueling, all the more so since I did the trip by myself. I've never experienced - and probably never will again - anything like that day-long journey up the Route de la Baie James. From Matagami to Radisson, a seven hour trip, there is nothing. A few Cree houses are here and there, and there is a somewhat dilapidated gas station (the only one) half way between the two towns.
The terrain is incredible. Miles and miles and miles of nothing. Rock out-croppings, weird looking trees, hills, mountains, surging rivers, and always, just within eyesight, the electrical towers bringing power from the north to the south.
It really was one of the most awe-inspiring trips I have ever completed. I wouldn't call it fun, there isn't much to do in Radisson (though the hotel there is surprising decent). Seeing the immense dam was a once-in-a-lifetime thing, and every Quebecer should make the trip.
Radisson is Hydro-Quebec's little village in the north. The town of about 300 people is the northernmost non-native village in Quebec, and is at the same latitude as the mouth of James Bay. It's inhabitants maintain the huge Robert-Bourassa hydro-electrical dam complex.
I visited Radisson and the Baie-James region in 2007. It was an incredible trip. I drove all the way from Gatineau to Radisson, stopping in Matagami on the way up. It was grueling, all the more so since I did the trip by myself. I've never experienced - and probably never will again - anything like that day-long journey up the Route de la Baie James. From Matagami to Radisson, a seven hour trip, there is nothing. A few Cree houses are here and there, and there is a somewhat dilapidated gas station (the only one) half way between the two towns.
The terrain is incredible. Miles and miles and miles of nothing. Rock out-croppings, weird looking trees, hills, mountains, surging rivers, and always, just within eyesight, the electrical towers bringing power from the north to the south.
It really was one of the most awe-inspiring trips I have ever completed. I wouldn't call it fun, there isn't much to do in Radisson (though the hotel there is surprising decent). Seeing the immense dam was a once-in-a-lifetime thing, and every Quebecer should make the trip.
Monday, July 20, 2009
The Recent Controversy
There is very little I could add that hasn't been said about the recent Eric Amber "Go Fuck Yourself" controversy. If this is the first you've heard about it, go here, here, and/or here. You should also be able to find the story reported on in the various media outlets in Quebec.
Colour me unsurprised and unshocked. It is never new to see something like this happen, but it does always surprise me how shocked Quebecers become in response. Have you paid attention? Are you aware of our history? Nothing new, nothing new. Unfortunately, there is a tendency to ignore this sort of behaviour and to think that we're a valued part of this Canadian community.
It hasn't been polled because they're scared of the results, but I bet that a poll of Canadians as to whether they want Quebec to stay or to go would not make Quebecers feel all fuzzy and warm.
But, we have to worry about our pensions and transfer payments. Dignity and self-respect can be sold.
Colour me unsurprised and unshocked. It is never new to see something like this happen, but it does always surprise me how shocked Quebecers become in response. Have you paid attention? Are you aware of our history? Nothing new, nothing new. Unfortunately, there is a tendency to ignore this sort of behaviour and to think that we're a valued part of this Canadian community.
It hasn't been polled because they're scared of the results, but I bet that a poll of Canadians as to whether they want Quebec to stay or to go would not make Quebecers feel all fuzzy and warm.
But, we have to worry about our pensions and transfer payments. Dignity and self-respect can be sold.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Kudos to Le Devoir...
...who leave coverage of the Michael Jackson funeral pageant to a brief note on the Culture page. Real top stories: nuclear discussions between the USA and Russia, Monique Jerome-Forget's legacy slipping away, and economic information about the status of the FTQ.
You know, news.
You know, news.
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